The Frisbee Fiasco

No one at the Pentagon is talking about who originated the idea. But somehow, back in 1968, the Navy began experimenting with those saucer-shaped toys called Frisbees, ostensibly to find a better way to keep flares aloft. Last week, after spending $375,000 on the Frisbee project, the Navy admitted that it was a flop.

On the face of it, the scheme was not all that farfetched. Flares are usually fired from the ground high into the air or dropped from a plane to light up a target at night. To extend the time of illumination, parachutes are used to slow the flares' descent. Trouble is the chutes are bulky and heavy. Thus, the light little Frisbee, which is stabilized by its gyroscope-like spin as it sails through the air, seemed like a possible alternative. Properly launched, the Navy researchers reasoned, Frisbees might well serve as a steady descending platform for flares and perhaps other payloads. Some Pentagon sources have suggested that the Navy hoped to load Frisbee-like disks with anti-personnel explosives, which would be scattered in all directions as the disk spun above a target area.

Whatever the real objective, the Navy did test the concept both in wind tunnels and off 1,000-ft.-high Hurricane Mesa in Utah. As expected, the Navy's flying saucers always soared beautifully--when they were unloaded. But when they had to carry any significant extra weight they fell flat on their faces. Conclusion: the Frisbee's lift-to-drag ratio was insufficient for the vehicle to support a working flare. Back to the drawing board.

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